Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders
Operate or tend furnaces, such as gas, oil, coal, electric-arc or electric induction, open-hearth, or oxygen furnaces, to melt and refine metal before casting or to produce specified types of steel.
What it pays
Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders earn a median of $26.17/hr — about $54,500 a year. The lowest-paid 10% earn $18.85/hr; the top 10% earn $35.81/hr. (Annual figures are approximate: hourly × 2,080.)
Metal-Refining Furnace Operators and Tenders earn a median of $26.17/hr — about $54,500 a year. The lowest-paid 10% earn $18.85/hr; the top 10% earn $35.81/hr. (Annual figures are approximate: hourly × 2,080.)
What you'd actually do
- Regulate supplies of fuel and air, or control flow of electric current and water coolant to heat furnaces and adjust temperatures.
- Draw smelted metal samples from furnaces or kettles for analysis, and calculate types and amounts of materials needed to ensure that materials meet specifications.
- Weigh materials to be charged into furnaces, using scales.
- Record production data, and maintain production logs.
- Observe air and temperature gauges or metal color and fluidity, and turn fuel valves or adjust controls to maintain required temperatures.
- Operate controls to move or discharge metal workpieces from furnaces.
How you get there
Typical entry-level education: High school diploma. Overall preparation: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).
The feel of the work
Much of the day is spent working solo. (Compared against the other 818 careers in the guide.)
Working for yourself
About 1.2% of metal-refining furnace operators and tenders are self-employed.
Who it tends to fit
This work tends to fit people who are hands-on and organized and detail-focused.
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Quick questions
- How much does a metal-refining furnace operators and tender make?
- The median pay is $26.17 per hour — roughly $54,500 a year, with the real range running from about $18.85/hr (10th percentile) to $35.81/hr (90th percentile). Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- Do you need a degree to be a metal-refining furnace operators and tender?
- The typical entry-level education is: High school diploma. Overall preparation level: some preparation (Job Zone 2 of 5).
- What does a metal-refining furnace operators and tender actually do all day?
- Regulate supplies of fuel and air, or control flow of electric current and water coolant to heat furnaces and adjust temperatures. Draw smelted metal samples from furnaces or kettles for analysis, and calculate types and amounts of materials needed to ensure that materials meet specifications. Weigh materials to be charged into furnaces, using scales.
Wages: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS. Tasks & interests: O*NET. Career pathways shown in the app are draft archetypes — verify before relying on them. Trailhead is a free career guide for students — honest numbers, no hype.
Trailhead is operated by FLEXVermont LLC. It is intended for high-school students age 13 and older, and the educators and families who support them, and is not directed to children under 13. Trailhead is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It does not offer professional, financial, or career advice, and its wage figures and pathways are estimates that may not fit your situation — they should not be relied on as the sole basis for any decision.
Trailhead is operated by FLEXVermont LLC. It is intended for high-school students age 13 and older, and the educators and families who support them, and is not directed to children under 13. Trailhead is provided for general informational and educational purposes only. It does not offer professional, financial, or career advice, and its wage figures and pathways are estimates that may not fit your situation — they should not be relied on as the sole basis for any decision.